Middle East & North Africa

31 Items

Afghan National Army-Territorial Force members prepare for an exercise at the Kabul Military Training Center in Kabul, Afghanistan, June 11, 2018. (Tech. Sgt. Sharida Jackson/Air Force)

Associated Press

Analysis & Opinions - Miami Herald

Peace with the Taliban? Trump Warned of Afghan Pullout Risks

| Jan. 30, 2019

Trump administration claims of progress in talks with the Taliban have sparked fears even among the president's allies that his impatience with the war in Afghanistan will lead him to withdraw troops too soon, leaving the country at risk of returning to the same volatile condition that prompted the invasion in the first place.

Family Fisher Fellow and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Tawakkol Karman

APB

Analysis & Opinions - The Washington Post

Enough is Enough. End the War in Yemen.

| Nov. 21, 2018

Today, the Yemeni people are suffering from the actions of outsiders. Regional powers have turned the country into an arena for proxy conflicts that have little to do with the actual interests of the Yemeni nation. Large parts of the country have been devastated, including much of its vital infrastructure. Millions are threatened by starvation and disease. The fighting has left tens of thousands of others dead or wounded.

US President Trump meets with Saudi Arabia's King Salman

CNN

Analysis & Opinions - New Yorker

Trump’s Utter Denial About Saudi Arabia and Its Crown Prince

| Nov. 20, 2018

So much for American justice. In a statement both stunning and coldhearted, President Trump on Tuesday gave Saudi Arabia a pass on the grisly murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the name of U.S. national security. He blithely rejected a U.S. intelligence assessment as well as damning physical evidence provided by Turkey indicating that the kingdom’s de-facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, authorized the Saudi dissident’s execution, in Istanbul, on October 2nd. The President of the United States sounded more like a defense attorney—or lobbyist—for the oil-rich kingdom than a protector of American values.

President Donald Trump speaks about "worst cover-up ever’ on Khashoggi case

Reuters

Analysis & Opinions - Vanity Fair

“This Administration is Hoping This Will Blow Over”: The Foreign-Policy Community Loses Any Remaining Faith in Trump

| Oct. 28, 2018

Inside Washington, foreign-policy experts hoping for a reset swiftly downgraded their expectations. And as the Khashoggi affair has played out, disappointment has morphed to cynicism within the diplomatic community.

Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammad Bin Salman Al Saud shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump

Getty Images

Analysis & Opinions - New York Daily News

What Does Trump Stand For? His Administration's Dithering on the Saudis Forces Us to Ask

| Oct. 23, 2018

The grisly assassination of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi at the hands of a Saudi murder squad — and the Saudi regime’s delays, denials and ludicrous falsehoods about the killing — forces the United States to grapple with our traditional role in upholding human rights worldwide.

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Crown Prince and Minister of Defense of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Getty Images

Analysis & Opinions - CNBC

The US is 'A Long Way' from Taking 'Punitive Action' Against Saudi Arabia Over Missing Journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Says Ex-Ambassador Nicholas Burns

| Oct. 15, 2018

The U.S. is "a long way" from taking any "punitive action" against Saudi Arabia over the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi any time soon, a former ambassador said Monday.

"For President Trump, it is a difficult balancing act," Nicholas Burns, who served under Republican and Democratic administrations as ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Greece, said on CNBC's "Squawk Alley."

"He doesn't want to end the relationship with Saudi Arabia," he added. "But on the other hand, you have American values to uphold."

A protest at the Embassy of Saudi Arabia about the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi

Associated Press

Analysis & Opinions - The Boston Globe

Here’s Why We Should Care About the Khashoggi Case

| Oct. 12, 2018

Finding out the truth about the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul and responding to it properly might seem to have little to do with the average American. Here’s why one diplomatic expert says the situation matters a lot.

Khashoggi was a legal permanent resident of the United States, Nicholas Burns said. “He’s a green card holder. He’s like lots of our relatives who first came to America who were in transition to become a citizen,” Burns said.

Nicholas Burns (r) and Seth Moulton

Benn Craig/Belfer Center

Analysis & Opinions - Future of Diplomacy Project, Belfer Center

Conversations in Diplomacy: Congressman Seth Moulton

| Mar. 27, 2017

In this installation of Conversations in Diplomacy, Congressman Seth Moulton, Representative of the Sixth District of Massachusetts, military veteran, and graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School, discusses the most serious threats to U.S. national security with Ambassador Nicholas Burns, Faculty Director of the Future of Diplomacy Project.